HUNGRY, BEHIND, & ALMOST HOMELESS DUE 2 HEALTH&C19

In January of this year 2020 I had major surgery. The procedure was called a whipple and it involved removing  the head of my pancreas, whole duodenum (a part of the small intestine), a portion of the bile duct, the gallbladder and associated lymph nodes, as well as part of my stomach. Diagram shown below to give you a better understanding.I was diagnosed with pancreatic divisum and eventual lead to chronic pancreatitis. Link below explaining what each is
https://pancreasfoundation.org/patient-information/pancreatic-cancer/treatment-of-pancreatic-cancer/whipple-procedure/ 
https://pancreasfoundation.org/patient-information/ailments-pancreas/pancreas-divisum/ 
for those who can’t click on link I’ll give a brief description. Diagram shown below of what a    normal pancreas without divisum looks like       and one with divisum. 
Pancreatic divisum is a a genetic anomaly formed at birth in about 9% of embryos and in 4-14% of the population. Its where the dorsal and ventral anlagen do not fuse together and instead, divide and spilt into separate ducts. This duct or “ducts” in my case were found in the duodenum where they attach to my pancreas. The pancreas’s role is not only for the production of insulin but also in the digestion process of food. By producing digestive juices called enzymes that help in this process of breaking down and digesting food, these juices then travel through the duct or “ducts” in my case to other parts of the body. When this duct or again with me,  “ducts” which is called divisum stated above can become blocked and cause pancreatitis where the pancreas becomes inflamed and can cause tissue damage. After so much damage incurs for so long this can cause what’s called chronic pancreatitis .

https://pancreasfoundation.org/patient-information/chronic-pancreatitis/   
Chronic pancreatitis is  just like regular acute pancreatitis but this is where the pancreas becomes permanently damaged and does not get better. It’s extremely painful and can be very serious and require a lot of medical attention, especially when attacks occur. There is no cure and nothing can be done to fix but only medicines and procedures in hopes to help with symptoms of the severe pain.  

After so much pain I could only take so much and medicine would only get me so far and take away so much pain. Everyday I was miserable beyond belief and I knew I couldn’t live like this anymore. After years of battling this before being diagnosed with episodes of attacks, hospitalizations, tests, treatments, medicine, and doctors I needed to find something more probable. So I decided to get the whipple done, which I described in the beginning. This wasn’t a guarantee either to work but a way in hopes to help with this severe pain and give me a better quality of life. I missed enough work and spent enough days in bed and in the hospital I was hoping this surgery would bring all that to an end. After 30 days in the hospital and 4 months out of work I was starting to feel better, or so I thought. I began getting this cramp like attack happen out of nowhere and when I tell you about pain, I’d rather die than have to experience this pain for more than 30 minutes, which thank God I’ve never had to endure. This indescribable Pain which I thought the chronic pancreatitis was painful,...boy was I wrong! This pain made the pancreatitis pain feel like I stubbed my toe or a needle prick you get at the doctors. Doctors couldn’t figure it out and everything I changed in my routine to everything I could think of didn’t change, stop, or prevent these sudden attacks from occurring. They can happen multiple times in a day to not happening for over a week or two. There is no guessing when it will come about or when it will stop. All I know is it’s the most excruciating thing I’ve ever experienced in my life and wouldn’t wish it on my worse enemy.

Once I returned to work and tried to start functioning in society once again I was off to a good start besides these attacks and sometimes pancreatic related pain. I was now on a pill called creon which is a enzyme pill big enough for a horse and need to take it every time I eat wether it’s just a bite from a candy bar to a full course meal. I couldn’t still can’t gain weight to save my life and I have my good days and my bad days. It got to the point though however I couldn’t commit to full time work and with Covid happening this was not good. It got even worse where I couldn’t even commit to a set schedule of anytime and had to result in app jobs like amazon flex, DoorDash, grubhub, task rabbit, etc where I could make my own schedule and decide when I wanted to work. I have an apartment, car with car insurance, phone bill, student loans, other expenses, and food of course.which thankfully my boss was able to help me and his uncle and him donated  the car to me shortly after my surgery as my old car died right before I went in for the procedure. I don’t know what I would of done or be at now if it wasn’t for them helping me out with that. My boss runs and owns that pizza place in Levittown  New York on the island which is delicious and has a big vegan menu as well as your traditional Italian meat and cheese and other dishes of course. Thought I’d throw that in here since him and his family have treated me so well and can’t begin to thank them. Unfortunately I need to ask for help and that’s why I’m writing this story for GoFundMe. I need to raise money for myself to pay for my rent, expenses, and food from anyone willing to donate and help me out in the desperate time of need. With no family really left besides my step dad and aunt who have done enough and really aren’t in the situation to help me seeing they are struggling very much themselves. I’ve gotten help from some friends but those are only a few and only got me a couple weeks of groceries and maybe a portion of one of my bills. I’m behind a month or two now on pretty much everything and just used my security deposit on September’s rent and owe for October and  November’s is coming up. I don’t know what to do now and currently working as much as I can.

However things took another horrible turn and I ended up in the hospital about a week ago with what’s called SVT. Supraventricular tachycardia is a rapid heartbeat that develops when disruption of normal electrical impulses of the heart occur.I almost went into cardiac arrest and was onceof the scariest things I’ve been through if not the scariest. I thought I was going to die and now have to see a cardiologist and see what’s preventing this. Doctors at emergency room said it could be from a number of factors including stress, diet, over exerting myself, which I was doing trying to keep up with my expenses and late payments.  Which I honestly love to work and hate being stuck inside and doing nothing. It really bothers me when I’m not doing something productive or helping someone in way or another. I’ve always put others first before myself in life and right now it kills me that I have to stop that and focus on my self, if I don’t then I won’t be able to get back to do what I love to do and that’s helping others and going to work. In the meantime I have to unfortunately take it easier which means less work and less money and I’m trying not to stress out but I don’t know what I’m going to do and could use a little help right now getting caught up or even getting two months ahead or more so I can continue to have the room that I rent, food to eat, car to drive so I can make it to all my doctors appointments (there’s a lot of them) ,work when I can,  bills, expenses, and food of course. I’m looking into food benefits from the government in the meantime and also collecting unemployment but it’s no where near enough to survive on at all. My payments are just enough to pay for one or two of my smaller bills that I have a month.

I know everyone because of Covid right now are struggling and are in a tough spot with expenses as well and trying to get by. So I don’t expect anything from anyone really and wouldn’t expect anything either. I know these days are tough right now and I hope they get better and pray everyone finds a way to get through financial hardship and more importantly bad health. I pray that everyone gets the medical assistance and help they need and make it through anything that may be affecting them or their loved ones at this time. However any of those of you that are in a position to help wether it be a couple cents to a couple dollars, anything would be of great appreciation and admiration if you could send it my way and help me out in my financial hardship and bad health. Prayers would be great as well if you can donate to my cause. Again thank you all for taking the time to read this and God bless you all. I hope all of you get through this rough time and are able to enjoy your holidays and or just days with your loved ones. When I’m back on the field and off the side lines I’m going to do my best to help those in need like me right now and pay it forward when I can and where I can. I promise once I get through this I will give back to as many as I can just like those are doing for me wether or not the amount or help infer or receive. Thank you again and my heart goes out to all. Be safe and healthy 

truly grateful
            &
thanks for all
your support
 
      James